Soucek: We were the better team!

Tomas Soucek insists the Hammers were the better team in the Europa League semi-final first leg against Eintracht Frankfurt.

The Irons were ultimately beaten 2-1 at the London Stadium thanks to goals from Ansgar Knauff and Daichi Kamada.

It leaves the Hammers with a major uphill battle to qualify for the final but there were chances for the Irons to win the game in 90 minutes.

Jarrod Bowen hit both the post and the crossbar, the latter with an injury-time bicycle kick, while Said Benrahma also hit the post with a long-range effort.

And Soucek insists that the Hammers need to remain confident of reaching the final ahead of next week’s second leg in Germany.

Speaking after the game, as per the BBC Sport website, the Czech Republic international said: “We had many chances. It is possible to go through, there is still a lot to play for in the second leg.

“It was hard from the beginning but we reacted well. We should go there very confident to go through to the final. We were the better team today, there is still a good chance for us. It’s possible to beat them, we are the better team.

“We didn’t show up good enough today. For some players the second leg will be the biggest game in their lives.”

The Irons are in action against Arsenal this weekend in a game that is likely to feature a much-changed team ahead of next week’s second semi-final.